Small business owner D'artagnan Caldicott knows the struggle of keeping the till ticking over and recruiting good staff – and coronavirus only makes the job harder.
Mr Caldicott owns a cafe and technology repair shop in Queensland, both of which been dealt a financial blow during the pandemic.
He feels stimulus packages aren’t as effective as they need to be, saying the Federal Government’s JobKeeper scheme makes it near impossible to fill casual jobs.
"Nobody wanted to work, why would they come to work when they're getting $700 a week for sitting at home?"
He also believes the Queensland Government’s COVID-19 adaption grant program, offering business owners $10,000 grants, is flawed because there are too many restrictions on who is eligible.
In one of her first tasks as Minister for Employment and Small Business, Di Farmer is doing a roadshow to better understand the big issues small businesses face.
She will visit Bundaberg on February 16, Maryborough on February 16, and Hervey Bay on February 17.
Ms Farmer wants to reiterate there are a number of different lifelines available, and she wants to know if regional employers are aware.
"A lot of the businesses say they already know about them.
"We really want to understand why people aren't taking them up, is it because they find it too hard?" Ms Farmer asks.
She is also promising to continue applying pressure on the Federal Government to extend JobKeeper beyond March.
“We’re doing what we can to support small business, and with the end of JobKeeper looming, we know many small business owners will be worried.”
But Mr Caldicott feels they’ve left meeting with regional employers too little, too late, given the pandemic started more than a year ago.
"I think the government should have spoken to small businesses a bit more, and maybe came up with a bit of a better solution that was fairer for everyone," he says.
More information visit: www.business.qld.gov.au/smallbusinessroadshow
